Mass fish deaths in Nevada marina a mystery

Nevada – The deaths of thousands of fish in a Nevada marina is being investigated by state wildlife officials. As reported by the Associated Press (AP), officials are trying to uncover the mystery of why an estimated 100,000 fish in the Sparks Marina have died within the last month.

As noted in the report, although scientists say they have yet to understand the cause of the massive number of bass and catfish deaths they say a bitter cold snap may have contributed to a drop in dissolved oxygen levels.

Nevada Department of Wildlife spokesman Chris Healy is quoted by the AP as stating of the issue, “The 100,000 dead fish figure is something that is probably a pretty conservative guess… We don’t know if any small fish have survived, but for all intents and purposes, the fishery doesn’t exist anymore.”

Sparks city spokesman Adam Mayberry has emphasized that despite the deaths, the marina does not pose a health or safety threat.

Mayberry is quoted as stating, “Even with the biological anomaly we are seeing, it’s still a very safe body of water… You just can’t fish in the marina right now because there aren’t any fish there, and we are trying to figure out why.”